Because there is still a lot of politics in hockey, a lot of prejudging and dues paying – and the waiver rules make it easier to send guys down like him.
Tyson Barrie, despite an excellent training camp and preseason performance, was sent down to Lake Erie of the AHL today, along with Brad Malone, Patrick Bordeleau and (officially) Trevor Cann.

Barrie does not have to clear waivers if the Avs send him to the minors. If they tried that with an older veteran (based on the player’s age, when they signed their first pro contract and how many NHL games they’ve played) such as Kyle Cumiskey or Matt Hunwick, they could lose them for nothing on a waiver claim. In Cumiskey’s case, the Avs can not send him to the minors because he is hurt. He’s been out more than a week now with a pulled groin, and NHL bylaws state players can’t be sent down when officially injured. Cumiskey did skate today with an orange non-contact jersey.

The waiver period for an NHL season begins 12 days prior to the first regular season game. The odds were always stacked against Barrie to make the squad out of camp. The Avs want to go bigger on D, so that was a strike against him. Fellow rookie Stefan Elliott is in a more “favored son” status with the coaching staff right now, so that was another strike.

But he’ll be back. He’ll be a good player for the Avs I bet. Would a lot of fans like to see him around now, instead of guys like Hunwick and Cumiskey on the roster? Probably. At least I’m guessing so. Feel free to offer your thoughts.

The Avs currently have 27 players on the roster and need to get down to 23 by opening night. But the roster also includes three players – Brandon Yip, Cumiskey and Mark Olver – who are on the injured list.

What is wrong with Olver, you ask? He’s out indefinitely with a head injury. Details were slow to come on that, but it is the case. So, he can not be sent to Lake Erie either.

The Avs could have them on injured reserve at the start of the regular season and only have to cut one more guy by then. We’ll see as the week progresses.

If the Avs send Elliott to Lake Erie as well, then they will have made a colossal blunder in my book. He can play at this level already, and the Avs need some eager youth to blend in with their defense. Besides, Elliott had a good camp and can do things with the puck that few on the team can do – forwards and defenders.

The Avalanche returned from Las Vegas and its 4-1 preseason-ending victory over the LA Kings early this morning and skated for about 90 minutes at their practice complex, after reassigning four players to the American Hockey League’s Lake Erie Monsters. We’ll have more on the demotions of center Brad Malone, defenseman Tyson Barrie, left wing/enforcer Patrick Bordeleau and goalie Trevor Cann in Monday’s paper and online.

The roster is at 27 players, four above what it needs to be by Wednesday. Forward Brandon Yip (broken forearm) will be put on injured reserved, and I’m not sure what the club is going to do about defenseman Kyle Cumiskey, who skated by himself today in an orange jersey. He has a groin problem. The Avs are carrying 16 forwards, nine D and two goalies. The only remaining rookies are LW Gabriel Landeskog and D Stefan Elliott.

We think those guys have a good chance to be in the season-opening lineup Saturday against the Detroit Red Wings at the Pepsi Center.

Reassigning the 6-foot-6, 225-pound Bordeleau means the Avs likely will begin the season without an enforcer. Bordeleau, 25, has played for Lake Erie the past two seasons, racking up 125 penalty minutes last season.

“He’s a guy that certainly didn’t hurt his chances as far as being a depth player for us this year,” Avs coach Sacco said of Bordeleau.

Meanwhile, defenseman Erik Johnson crashed into the dasher boards during a drill and left the ice in upper-body pain. He later returned and is fine. Fellow big D-man Jan Hejda is wearing a protective brace on his left knee. He’s not too happy about the brace but said he’ll only use it for a couple weeks. He says he’s 100 percent.

Finally, the Avs’ charity golf classic is Monday at The Ridge at Castle Pines North in Castle Rock. Not sure if there are any openings for fans to join a foursome that includes a player. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. and the shotgun start is scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m.

Terry Frei graduated from Wheat Ridge High School in the Denver area and has degrees in history and journalism from the University of Colorado-Boulder. He worked for the Rocky Mountain News while attending CU and joined the Post staff after graduation. He has also worked at the Oregonian in Portland, Ore., and The Sporting News. His seventh book, March 1939: Before the Madness, was issued in February 2014.

Chambers covers college and professional hockey for The Denver Post. He has written for the Post since 1994, after dumping his first 9-to-5 office job a couple years out of college. He primarily follows the University of Denver hockey team and helps cover the Avalanche.